James Harden vs. Clifford Ray Season by Season Comparison

Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Clifford Ray and James Harden, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.

Player comparisons:
Career comparison / Season by season

Who had the better rookie season? Who had best stats in their 10th season? Who won a championship first? These questions and many others, are answered here.

James Harden played 15 years in the NBA, 5 more than Clifford Ray, who played 10. James Harden had the first of his seasons in 2009-10, while Clifford Ray had his rookie season in 1971-72. With that starting point, here you can take a look at each of their seasons side by side and compare how their careers evolved in achivements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.

Their Careers

Player
Total Seasons Playoffs Played NBA Years
James Harden 15 15 2009-10 to 2023-24
Clifford Ray 10 6 1971-72 to 1980-81

Comparison Season by Season

Jump to season:
1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15

Rookie Season

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2009-101971-72
Team Oklahoma City ThunderChicago Bulls
Honors & Awards -Achievement All-Rookie First Team
Achievement All-Rookie Second Team-
Playoffs Thunder Lost West Conf 1st RdBulls Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 76 22.9 9.9 0.6 2.6 3.2 1.8 1.1 0.3 1.4 2.6 3.1 7.6 .403 1.2 3.3 .375 2.6 3.2 .808
Clifford Ray 82 22.8 7.0 - - 10.6 3.1 - - - 3.6 2.7 5.4 .499 - - - 1.6 2.7 .615
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 20.0 7.7 0.2 2.3 2.5 1.8 1.0 0.2 0.5 2.3 2.0 5.2 .387 1.0 2.7 .375 2.7 3.2 .842
Clifford Ray 4 40.3 15.3 - - 16.5 4.0 - - - 3.8 6.8 12.8 .529 - - - 1.8 2.3 .778

Season 2

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2010-111972-73
Team Oklahoma City ThunderChicago Bulls
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Thunder Lost West Conf FinalsBulls Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 82 26.7 12.2 0.5 2.6 3.1 2.1 1.1 0.3 1.3 2.5 3.6 8.3 .436 1.4 4.0 .349 3.5 4.2 .843
Clifford Ray 73 27.5 8.6 - - 10.9 3.7 - - - 3.2 3.5 7.1 .492 - - - 1.6 2.6 .619
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 17 31.6 13.0 0.6 4.8 5.4 3.6 1.2 0.8 1.6 2.8 3.9 8.2 .475 1.4 4.5 .303 3.9 4.7 .825
Clifford Ray 5 7.2 1.2 - - 1.8 0.2 - - - 0.4 0.6 1.6 .375 - - - 0.0 0.0 -

Season 3

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2011-121973-74
Team Oklahoma City ThunderChicago Bulls
Honors & Awards Achievement Sixth Man of the Year-
Playoffs Thunder Lost NBA FinalsBulls Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 62 31.4 16.8 0.5 3.6 4.1 3.7 1.0 0.2 2.2 2.4 5.0 10.1 .491 1.8 4.7 .390 5.0 6.0 .846
Clifford Ray 80 32.9 9.3 3.6 8.7 12.2 3.1 0.7 2.2 - 3.5 3.9 7.7 .511 - - - 1.5 2.5 .608
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 20 31.5 16.3 0.7 4.5 5.1 3.4 1.6 0.1 2.1 3.4 4.7 10.7 .435 1.6 3.9 .410 5.4 6.3 .857
Clifford Ray 11 32.9 9.7 4.0 7.1 11.1 3.2 1.3 1.9 - 4.1 4.6 9.3 .500 - - - 0.5 1.4 .333

Season 4

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2012-131974-75
Team Houston RocketsGolden State Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA Third Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdNBA Champion NBA Champion
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 78 38.3 25.9 0.8 4.1 4.9 5.8 1.8 0.5 3.8 2.3 7.5 17.1 .438 2.3 6.2 .368 8.6 10.2 .851
Clifford Ray 82 30.7 9.4 3.2 7.5 10.6 2.2 1.2 1.4 - 3.7 3.6 7.0 .522 - - - 2.1 3.5 .602
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 40.5 26.3 0.8 5.8 6.7 4.5 2.0 1.0 4.5 3.0 7.5 19.2 .391 2.5 7.3 .341 8.8 11.0 .803
Clifford Ray 17 29.1 6.1 3.2 6.5 9.8 2.2 0.8 1.2 - 3.5 2.1 4.1 .522 - - - 1.9 3.1 .604

Season 5

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2013-141975-76
Team Houston RocketsGolden State Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdWarriors Lost West Conf Finals
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 73 38.0 25.4 0.8 3.9 4.7 6.1 1.6 0.4 3.6 2.4 7.5 16.5 .456 2.4 6.6 .366 7.9 9.1 .866
Clifford Ray 82 26.6 6.9 3.3 6.2 9.5 1.8 1.0 1.0 - 3.0 2.6 4.9 .525 - - - 1.7 2.8 .609
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 43.8 26.8 0.8 3.8 4.7 5.8 2.0 0.2 3.5 3.5 8.3 22.2 .376 2.7 9.0 .296 7.5 8.3 .900
Clifford Ray 13 29.0 9.1 3.3 6.7 10.0 1.5 1.5 1.5 - 3.6 3.7 6.1 .608 - - - 1.7 2.6 .647

Season 6

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2014-151976-77
Team Houston RocketsGolden State Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf FinalsWarriors Lost West Conf Semis
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 81 36.8 27.4 0.9 4.7 5.7 7.0 1.9 0.7 4.0 2.6 8.0 18.1 .440 2.6 6.9 .375 8.8 10.2 .868
Clifford Ray 77 26.2 8.2 2.6 5.4 8.0 1.5 1.0 1.1 - 3.1 3.4 5.8 .584 - - - 1.4 2.6 .528
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 17 37.4 27.2 0.7 5.0 5.7 7.5 1.6 0.4 4.5 2.9 7.6 17.3 .439 2.4 6.3 .383 9.6 10.5 .916
Clifford Ray 10 30.4 10.0 5.4 6.1 11.5 1.5 0.4 0.9 - 3.7 4.2 7.6 .553 - - - 1.6 2.8 .571

Season 7

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2015-161977-78
Team Houston RocketsGolden State Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf 1st RdDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 82 38.1 29.0 0.8 5.3 6.1 7.5 1.7 0.6 4.6 2.8 8.7 19.7 .439 2.9 8.0 .359 8.8 10.2 .860
Clifford Ray 79 28.7 8.8 3.0 6.6 9.6 1.9 0.9 1.1 1.9 3.7 3.4 6.0 .571 - - - 1.9 3.1 .609
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 5 38.6 26.6 1.4 3.8 5.2 7.6 2.4 0.2 5.2 2.6 8.2 20.0 .410 2.6 8.4 .310 7.6 9.0 .844
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------

Season 8

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2016-171978-79
Team Houston RocketsGolden State Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Assists Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf SemisDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 81 36.4 29.1 1.2 7.0 8.1 11.2 1.5 0.5 5.7 2.7 8.3 18.9 .440 3.2 9.3 .347 9.2 10.9 .847
Clifford Ray 82 23.4 6.9 2.6 4.8 7.4 1.7 0.6 0.6 1.9 3.2 2.8 5.4 .526 - - - 1.3 2.3 .558
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 11 37.0 28.5 0.6 4.8 5.5 8.5 1.9 0.5 5.4 3.9 8.2 19.8 .413 2.9 10.5 .278 9.2 10.5 .878
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------

Season 9

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2017-181979-80
Team Houston RocketsGolden State Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement Season MVP-
Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf FinalsDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 72 35.4 30.4 0.6 4.8 5.4 8.8 1.8 0.7 4.4 2.3 9.0 20.1 .449 3.7 10.0 .367 8.7 10.1 .858
Clifford Ray 81 20.8 6.0 1.5 4.2 5.8 2.3 0.6 0.4 1.9 3.3 2.5 4.7 .530 0.0 0.0 .000 1.0 1.8 .564
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 17 36.5 28.6 0.8 4.4 5.2 6.8 2.2 0.6 3.8 2.7 9.3 22.6 .410 3.1 10.2 .299 6.9 7.8 .887
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------

Season 10

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2018-191980-81
Team Houston RocketsGolden State Warriors
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf SemisDid Not Play
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 78 36.8 36.1 0.8 5.8 6.6 7.5 2.0 0.7 5.0 3.1 10.8 24.5 .442 4.8 13.2 .368 9.7 11.0 .879
Clifford Ray 66 12.7 2.4 1.1 2.2 3.3 0.8 0.4 0.2 1.1 2.9 1.0 2.3 .421 0.0 0.0 - 0.4 0.9 .468
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 11 38.5 31.6 0.8 6.0 6.8 6.6 2.2 0.9 4.6 3.7 9.9 24.0 .413 4.4 12.5 .350 7.5 8.9 .837
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------

Season 11

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2019-20-
Team Houston Rockets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-NBA First Team-
Achievement Scoring Leader-
Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Rockets Lost West Conf Semis-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 68 36.5 34.3 1.0 5.5 6.6 7.5 1.8 0.9 4.5 3.3 9.9 22.3 .444 4.4 12.4 .355 10.2 11.8 .865
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 12 37.3 29.6 1.0 4.6 5.6 7.7 1.5 0.8 3.8 3.6 9.1 19.0 .478 3.3 9.8 .333 8.2 9.7 .845
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------

Season 12

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2020-21-
Team Houston Rockets, Brooklyn Nets-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs Nets Lost East Conf Semis-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 44 36.6 24.6 0.8 7.1 7.9 10.8 1.2 0.8 4.0 2.3 7.8 16.7 .466 2.8 7.6 .362 6.3 7.3 .861
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 9 35.8 20.2 0.8 5.6 6.3 8.6 1.7 0.7 2.9 2.6 5.7 12.0 .472 2.7 7.3 .364 6.2 6.9 .903
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------

Season 13

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2021-22-
Team Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers-
Honors & Awards Achievement All-Star Game-
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf Semis-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 65 37.2 22.0 0.8 6.8 7.7 10.3 1.3 0.6 4.4 2.4 6.3 15.3 .410 2.3 6.9 .330 7.2 8.2 .877
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 12 39.9 18.6 0.9 4.8 5.7 8.6 0.8 0.7 4.2 2.4 5.3 13.2 .405 2.3 6.3 .368 5.6 6.3 .893
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------

Season 14

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2022-23-
Team Philadelphia 76ers-
Honors & Awards Achievement Assists Leader-
Playoffs 76ers Lost East Conf Semis-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 58 36.8 21.0 0.7 5.4 6.1 10.7 1.2 0.5 3.4 1.9 6.4 14.5 .441 2.8 7.2 .385 5.4 6.2 .867
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 11 38.8 20.3 0.5 5.6 6.2 8.3 1.8 0.4 3.2 2.5 6.5 16.6 .393 2.8 7.5 .378 4.4 5.0 .873
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------

Season 15

James Harden Clifford Ray
Season 2023-24-
Team Los Angeles Clippers-
Honors & Awards
Playoffs Clippers Lost West Conf 1st Rd-
more >>
Regular Season Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 72 34.3 16.6 0.5 4.7 5.1 8.5 1.1 0.8 2.6 1.8 4.9 11.4 .428 2.6 6.8 .381 4.2 4.8 .878
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------
Playoffs Stats
G Min Pts ORb DRb Reb Ast Stl Blk TO PF FGM / A % 3PM / A % FTM / A %
James Harden 6 40.3 21.2 0.5 4.0 4.5 8.0 1.0 1.0 2.3 2.2 6.7 14.8 .449 3.0 7.8 .383 4.8 5.3 .906
Clifford Ray ------- --- ----------